Daily Yellowstone journal., 1887-10-30


AN that's the way the ol' boys turned
up their toes, sonny, one after another,
ez long ez il were wuth W lie foOlin' 'roun'
il the woods after chance. I'm afeerd
I've lost my chance o. followin' their ex-
ample, for tn hain't painter nor sign
o. one within a thousan' miles o. here,
an it don't seem to be no trick at all TO
settle with bar nowadays. If my ol'
gun don't bust, or tree don't fall an
squash me, or a scattering shot in the
woods don't wing me, or | don't fall
overheard in the pond an git drowned.
I'm feerd, sonny, tht I'll hef to peg out
in bed, an th't the boys ez died game III
kinder feel ashamed O. me wen Gabriel
gives the bugle call an iine EN- on
t'other side o. Jurdan.
"But this here Burnt Chestnut run
'way-course yew heerd the curious story
ez TO how it got its name? Didn't never
hear il? Wall swow! That's curiouser
yet thin the story, an bein's 70 haven't
got nuthin' better to listen to jest now thin
them sassy red squirrels ez IL Sa.Iklin'
at us from ev'ry durn tree that's got
Z
sings ez if they was film saw an the
tappin' o that woodpecker on that dead
pine over ycnder Ill jst give ye the his
tory O. Of Burnt Chestnut.
ut happened good many years
ago, il did, sonny-so long ago that
thez very few in the country ez ever
heern ON il, let alone 'memberin' on it.
'Twa'n't long after stage coaches begun
to run up through this deestric', an
that's fur enough back. goodness knows.
Wall. anyhow. one fall an ol' man th't
seemed to hev his share o. money got
out o the stage over yender at the cross
ms tavern, on t'other side o the bridge,
an staid thar. He give his name as
Simon Morer an he took 10 lookin' bout
the deestric', an finally bought tract o.
land up long the Big Swamp run. He
had piece of il cleared o timber, an
then he built the biggest an snuggest log
house th't were ever seen. The mex
summer half dozen wagon loads o. fur
nitur' an setch fixin's fer housekeepin'
ez hadn't never been seen nor heern ON
in these parts came a-drivin' up to ol
Morer's log house, an followerin' them
came the ol' man, two young fellers ez
turned ont 10 he his sons an an all-fred
hans some gal, not more'n 10 year
| oil. Ii soon got n ised around 'mongst
wat few folks tn was diggin' in them
days fer livin' in the deestric' tht this
gal were the ol' mans niece. One o the
! boys were named Simon. arter his pap,
/ s'pose, an t'other were called James.
Simon were bout 90. an James not
more'n 81. The gals name were Pa
| thence. James was tip top young chap
an fell right in with the ways o. the Of
residenters, an got TO be so pop lar mong
'em th't twain long fore they was call
in him Jim. Young Simon, though,
were an overbearin' an disagreeable cuss
He hated the woods an the people, and
didn't make no bones o saving 50. Con-
sequently. folks want SO blame well sOt
to'ards him ez they mowt ha' been. But
that hain't nuther here nor thar.
"You noticed. o. course, how things
will cit circ lated around. an anyone's
business be ev'ryone's business, even if
tn hain't more'n half dozen folks in
deestric' twenty miles square. Wall,
that 5 the way il went bout the Morers.
an twa'n't long fore the hull woods
know'd th't ol' Norer KEEP a good deal
o money in his house, locked up in a
iron bound chist, an th't young Simon
an his brother Jim was both on EN- dead
in love with their cousin Patience. an
th't Patience had her heart sot on jim,
an th't Consistently tn were the ol' boy
to pay most o the time in the Morer
family. The ol' mans favorite son were
young Simon. an vile ne owned up 10
that. he wouldn't hey no furce-hut
business in the matter O Patience. an
We're tryin' all the time to get the boys
to patch mp some sort o compromise.
TIL were trouble, too, about the ol'
mans money cause Simon he claimed
th't most Of it must be his'n by rights,
an Jim he lowed III he'd bc blamed if
tn were.
"An' 50 things went on for a year an
better. One day sam Bates, who were
happenin to walk by the Morer place,
heerl big quarrel goin on 'mongst the
family. He heerd the oil man say th't
he wouldn' stan it no longer. An th't
he'd divide his money even 'twiXt the
boys, an tht the girl must marry Simon.
Then Jim he swore by all that was blue
th't the girl shouldn't marry Simon, vet
es fer the money. the old man could do
ilst ez he blamed pleased with il. OF
Simon tol' young Simon to take the stage
fer philadolphy mex mornin', an have
his lawyer draw up the papers, an to
bring 'em buck an he'd sign EN-, an
Simon went.
"Th' want much stir sron bout the
Morer place fer a week arter that Then
folk thort il began 10 look my steriOus,
an were jist ON the pint o 'vestigatin
it, wen young Simon got back. 'Twan't
many hours fore the hull deestric'
know'd th't Simon had found the house
empty The oil man Were gone, Jim
were gone, Patience were gone, an wuss
thin all, as Simon said, the OF mans
money chist were gone. Simon ripped
round the neighbOrhoOd an swure th Z
his brother Jim had murdered the ol'
man an hid his body som'crs in the
woods, an then stole the money an run
off with Patience. More'n th't. he swore
th't ev'ry one in the deestric had helped
Jim do it. an th't he'd hov 'cm all hung.
But no evidence o. no murder coudn't
lie found, an nobody couldn't under.
stand wat IL all meant. ATtCr W lie
Simon. iindin tht he couldn't find a
clew 10 uuthin'. sot fire to the house one
night an mex day left the deeslrc'
cussin ev'rybody th't were in it, an no.
body ever sce him ag'in.
People was beginning TO fergit all